Sargassum Nanocellulose-Based Fully Ingestible Supercapacitor.
Qian He1, Zhang-Chi Ling1, De-Han Li1
1Department of Chemistry, New Cornerstone Science Laboratory, Institute of Biomimetic Materials & Chemistry, Anhui Engineering Laboratory of Biomimetic Materials, Division of Nanomaterials & Chemistry, Hefei National Research Center for Physical Sciences at the Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230026, China.
Advanced Materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)
|January 22, 2025
Summary
Researchers developed a fully ingestible supercapacitor using sargassum cellulose nanofibers. This innovative device provides a disposable power source and antibacterial electrostimulation for the human intestine.
Area of Science:
- Biomedical Engineering
- Materials Science
- Energy Storage
Background:
- Small, high-performance energy modules are crucial for biomedical applications like diagnosis and therapy.
- Designing safe and effective ingestible power supplies presents significant challenges due to performance and safety limitations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To present a fully ingestible supercapacitor (FISC) utilizing sargassum cellulose nanofiber.
- To evaluate the FISC's performance in terms of capacitance and energy density.
- To assess the FISC's antibacterial activity and potential for therapeutic applications.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of a fully ingestible supercapacitor using sargassum cellulose nanofiber.
- Characterization of the supercapacitor's electrochemical performance, including electrode areal capacitance and energy density.
- Evaluation of the supercapacitor's antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli during its self-discharge process.
Main Results:
- The developed FISC demonstrated an electrode areal capacitance of 2.29 F cm-2 and a high energy density of 307 µWh cm-2.
- The device achieved over 90% antibacterial activity against Escherichia coli during self-discharge.
- The FISC, when encapsulated, can serve as a disposable power supply and electrostimulation source within the intestine.
Conclusions:
- The sargassum cellulose nanofiber-based FISC offers a promising solution for ingestible power supply and localized intestinal therapy.
- This technology enables new possibilities for simple and effective therapeutic interventions in the gastrointestinal tract.
- The dual functionality of power delivery and bacteriostasis highlights the potential of this ingestible device for biomedical applications.
